Ecumenical Advocacy Days for Global Peace with Justicehttp://advocacydays.org
For Global Peace with JusticeWed, 20 May 2015 16:31:37 +0000en-UShourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=4.2.3New York Times Echoes EAD 2015 Lobby Day Message on Immigrant Detentionhttp://advocacydays.org/2015/05/15/new-york-times-echoes-ead-2015-lobby-day-message-on-immigrant-detention/
http://advocacydays.org/2015/05/15/new-york-times-echoes-ead-2015-lobby-day-message-on-immigrant-detention/#commentsFri, 15 May 2015 16:30:55 +0000http://advocacydays.org/?p=2692WASHINGTON – May 15, 2015 – In today’s Opinion page of The New York Times, the Times’ Editorial Board echoed the concerns and particular “Legislative Ask” from EAD’s April 2015 Lobby Day, with a focus on the injustices and possible remedies in the U.S. immigration detention system. Read the Op-Ed here. View the EAD 2015 Lobby Day Ask

]]>WASHINGTON – May 15, 2015 – In today’s Opinion page of The New York Times, the Times’ Editorial Board echoed the concerns and particular “Legislative Ask” from EAD’s April 2015 Lobby Day, with a focus on the injustices and possible remedies in the U.S. immigration detention system.

]]>http://advocacydays.org/2015/05/15/new-york-times-echoes-ead-2015-lobby-day-message-on-immigrant-detention/feed/0Over 1,000 Advocate for “Breaking the Chains” of Mass Incarceration & Global Exploitationhttp://advocacydays.org/2015/04/25/over-1000-advocate-for-breaking-the-chains-of-mass-incarceration-global-exploitation/
http://advocacydays.org/2015/04/25/over-1000-advocate-for-breaking-the-chains-of-mass-incarceration-global-exploitation/#commentsSat, 25 Apr 2015 14:58:39 +0000http://advocacydays.org/?p=2668WASHINGTON – April 23, 2015 – Over 1,000 Christian advocates were fired up for justice in the light of the difficult issues and injustices in domestic U.S. and international criminal and immigrant detention systems at the 13th Annual National Gathering of Ecumenical Advocacy Days (EAD) for Global Peace with Justice. The annual event and Congressional advocacy day, held in Washington,...

]]>WASHINGTON – April 23, 2015 – Over 1,000 Christian advocates were fired up for justice in the light of the difficult issues and injustices in domestic U.S. and international criminal and immigrant detention systems at the 13th Annual National Gathering of Ecumenical Advocacy Days (EAD) for Global Peace with Justice. The annual event and Congressional advocacy day, held in Washington, D.C. from April 17-20, 2015, was entitled, “Breaking the Chains: Mass Incarceration and Systems of Exploitation.”

“Together we have joined in a movement to shake the foundations of systems of human exploitation, including a prison-industrial system that incarcerates millions of people in the U.S. and abroad,” said Douglas Grace, Executive Director of EAD. “A world that incarcerates so many and allows some to profit from the exploitation of slave, trafficked and forced labor remains far from the ‘beloved community’ which we are all called to seek.”

Together, advocates were inspired by dynamic preachers of the liberating Gospel, including Rev. Traci deVon Blackmon pastor from Florissant and Ferguson, Mo., and Bishop José García of Bread for the World. Participants learned about the historical and theological foundations of problems in contemporary criminal justice systems as well as racial and economic exploitation systems around the world from witnesses such as Dr. Iva Carruthers, General Secretary of the Samuel DeWitt Proctor Conference, and Rev. Dr. Bill Mefford, of The United Methodist Church General Board of Church & Society.

They also were challenged to action by panel discussions on the role of the church in the “War on Drugs” and deeply moved to tears and action in light of the deplorable incarceration and abuse of children, women and men in prisons around the world. EAD activists were educated about the many related issues of global exploitation, torture, and incarceration through issues workshops and a moving and disturbing meditation from within a replica of a solitary confinement cell. (More information about EAD’s 2015 plenary speakers and preachers can be found here.)

Opportunities for networking by denomination and by state and local regions briefed advocates on the EAD’s 2015 Congressional advocacy Ask, which focused on efforts to end mandatory minimum sentences for low-level and nonviolent offenders and to end the immoral and unjust immigration bed quota, which often encourages, rather than discourages, mass immigrant detention on the U.S. border and elsewhere. Advocates were also given the opportunity to hone their organizing skills through training workshops.

Grace provided a theological context for the National Gathering and the legislative activity: “As people of faith, we denounce the elements in our world that justify such systems of exploitation and mass incarceration. At EAD, we confessed our personal and corporate failure to break the chains of poverty, racism, and greed institutionalized in our laws, economy, and social behaviors that have colluded to perpetuate such human exploitation and strip civil and human rights from so many.

“As people of Hope,” Grace continued, “we are reminded that Jesus’ radical message was one of liberation for all and restoration of right relationships. Through prayer, worship, advocacy training, networking and mobilization with other Christians, we have faced the reality of mass incarceration and corporate exploitation, and now call for national policies that bring liberation both to the prisoner and to a world in need of restoration.”

Photos from Friday, Saturday, and Sunday of the National Gathering are now available, along with additional photos of EAD’s Monday Lobby Day. Videos of the plenary speakers and panels, as well as the celebration and worship services will be added in the coming days and weeks, along with other written resources from the event.

]]>Ecumenical Advocacy Days 2015 – “Breaking the Chains: Mass Incarceration and Systems of Exploitation” – culminated with Lobby Day on Monday, April 20. This year EAD participants called on their members of Congress to “reform federal criminal justice and immigrant detention policies toward the goal of ending unfair, unnecessary, costly and racially biased mass incarceration.”

UPDATE (4/22/15): Additional photos from #ead2015 stream on Twitter have been added.

]]>http://advocacydays.org/2015/04/21/photos-scenes-from-ead-2015-lobby-day-monday/feed/0PHOTOS: Scenes From EAD 2015 – Sundayhttp://advocacydays.org/2015/04/20/photos-scenes-from-ead-2015-sunday/
http://advocacydays.org/2015/04/20/photos-scenes-from-ead-2015-sunday/#commentsMon, 20 Apr 2015 05:00:34 +0000http://advocacydays.org/?p=2350Ecumenical Advocacy Days 2015 – “Breaking the Chains: Mass Incarceration and Systems of Exploitation” – continued on Sunday, April 19 with an interdenominational worship, the “Breaking the Chains” plenary, state break-outs, and issue and advocacy skills training workshops – all capped by a closing celebration featuring speaker Roy L. Austin Jr., a member of the White House Domestic Policy Council as Deputy...

]]>Ecumenical Advocacy Days 2015 – “Breaking the Chains: Mass Incarceration and Systems of Exploitation” – continued on Sunday, April 19 with an interdenominational worship, the “Breaking the Chains” plenary, state break-outs, and issue and advocacy skills training workshops – all capped by a closing celebration featuring speaker Roy L. Austin Jr., a member of the White House Domestic Policy Council as Deputy Assistant to the President for the Office of Urban Affairs, Justice and Opportunity.

]]>http://advocacydays.org/2015/04/20/photos-scenes-from-ead-2015-sunday/feed/0PHOTOS: Scenes From EAD 2015 – Saturdayhttp://advocacydays.org/2015/04/19/photos-scenes-from-ead-2015-saturday/
http://advocacydays.org/2015/04/19/photos-scenes-from-ead-2015-saturday/#commentsSun, 19 Apr 2015 13:15:40 +0000http://advocacydays.org/?p=2269Ecumenical Advocacy Days 2015 – “Breaking the Chains: Mass Incarceration and Systems of Exploitation” – continued on Saturday, April 18 with a morning policy plenary on the historical and theological roots of contemporary issues of exploitation, a lunchtime plenary on “The Role of the Church in the ‘War on Drugs,'” issue workshops, state breakout sessions, denominational gatherings, and sponsor events, receptions and...

]]>Ecumenical Advocacy Days 2015 – “Breaking the Chains: Mass Incarceration and Systems of Exploitation” – continued on Saturday, April 18 with a morning policy plenary on the historical and theological roots of contemporary issues of exploitation, a lunchtime plenary on “The Role of the Church in the ‘War on Drugs,'” issue workshops, state breakout sessions, denominational gatherings, and sponsor events, receptions and dinners.

]]>http://advocacydays.org/2015/04/19/photos-scenes-from-ead-2015-saturday/feed/0PHOTOS: Scenes From EAD 2015 – Friday Nighthttp://advocacydays.org/2015/04/18/photos-scenes-from-ead-2015-friday-night/
http://advocacydays.org/2015/04/18/photos-scenes-from-ead-2015-friday-night/#commentsSat, 18 Apr 2015 13:00:18 +0000http://advocacydays.org/?p=2192Ecumenical Advocacy Days 2015 – “Breaking the Chains: Mass Incarceration and Systems of Exploitation” – kicked off Friday, April 17 with a series of pre-events, orientations and other welcome activities, and then an opening celebration spotlighted by a rousing keynote from Rev. Traci deVon Blackmon. The moving evening gathering also featured a number of speakers witnessing about their own encounters with...

]]>Ecumenical Advocacy Days 2015 – “Breaking the Chains: Mass Incarceration and Systems of Exploitation” – kicked off Friday, April 17 with a series of pre-events, orientations and other welcome activities, and then an opening celebration spotlighted by a rousing keynote from Rev. Traci deVon Blackmon. The moving evening gathering also featured a number of speakers witnessing about their own encounters with a world that incarcerates so many and allows some to profit from the exploitation of slave, trafficked and forced labor and that remains far from the “beloved community” that we are all called to seek. The program also included global songs for peace and justice from the ELCA Glocal Musicians.

]]>http://advocacydays.org/2015/04/18/photos-scenes-from-ead-2015-friday-night/feed/0White House Official to Join EAD 2015 as Keynote Speakerhttp://advocacydays.org/2015/04/14/white-house-official-to-join-ead-2015-as-keynote-speaker/
http://advocacydays.org/2015/04/14/white-house-official-to-join-ead-2015-as-keynote-speaker/#commentsWed, 15 Apr 2015 01:29:07 +0000http://advocacydays.org/?p=2185April 14, 2015 WASHINGTON, DC – Ecumenical Advocacy Days for Global Peace with Justice (EAD) is pleased to announce that White House official, Roy L. Austin, Jr. will join EAD participants as keynote speaker at the closing Banquet Dinner of EAD’s 13th annual national gathering on Sunday, April 19th at the DoubleTree Crystal City Hotel in Arlington, VA. The theme...

WASHINGTON, DC – Ecumenical Advocacy Days for Global Peace with Justice (EAD) is pleased to announce that White House official, Roy L. Austin, Jr. will join EAD participants as keynote speaker at the closing Banquet Dinner of EAD’s 13th annual national gathering on Sunday, April 19th at the DoubleTree Crystal City Hotel in Arlington, VA. The theme for the gathering is”Breaking the Chains: Mass Incarceration and Systems of Exploitation.” The national gathering is from April 17-20, and the Sunday banquet is on the eve of EAD’s Lobby Day where participants will take a message to The Hill concerning criminal justice reform and immigrant detention.

In March 2014, Austin joined the White House Domestic Policy Council as Deputy Assistant to the President for the Office of Urban Affairs, Justice and Opportunity. In this position, Austin coordinates the formulation and implementation of policy covering criminal justice, civil rights, housing, labor, human services and initiatives such as Promise Zones. Austin is also a member of the My Brother’s Keeper Task Force.

Austin began his career as an Honors Trial Attorney with the Criminal Section of the Civil Rights Division investigating and prosecuting hate crime and police brutality cases around the country. After approximately five years, he joined Keker & Van Nest LLP in San Francisco, as an associate working on complex civil and white-collar criminal cases, including a successful pro-bono civil lawsuit aimed at preventing racial profiling by the California Highway Patrol. In 2002, he joined the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia where he prosecuted domestic violence, adult and child sexual assault, human trafficking, homicide and fraud and public corruption cases. He left in 2007 to become a partner at McDermott, Will & Emery working primarily on white collar criminal cases. In 2009, Austin returned to the D.C. U.S. Attorney’s Office as a Senior Assistant United States Attorney and Coordinator of the D.C. Human Trafficking Task Force.

In January 2010, Austin was appointed Deputy Assistant Attorney General (DAAG), Civil Rights Division, U.S. Department of Justice. As a DAAG, Austin supervised the Criminal Section, and the Special Litigation Section’s law enforcement (police departments, corrections and juvenile justice) portfolio. In addition, he supervised work under the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Person Act (RLUIPA) and Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act. Among numerous other matters, Austin worked on cases involving the New Orleans Police Department, Missoula (MT) law enforcement and the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office.

Over his career, Austin has tried thirty jury trials to verdict. He served as an adjunct trial advocacy professor at George Washington University Law School from 2007 – 2013. Austin received his B.A. from Yale University and his J.D. from The University of Chicago and he grew up in State College, Pennsylvania.

Adopt criminal justice and sentencing reform policies that incorporate an end to mandatory minimum sentencing;

Eliminate the detention bed quota for immigrants and implement alternatives to immigrant detention.

Our Faith Conviction

As people of faith and conscience, we call for respect to be shown all people as bearers of God’s image. Jesus tells us to act humanely toward those we might consider “least” among God’s children. We are therefore concerned for the millions of men, women and children arrested, sentenced, incarcerated and returned home from incarceration throughout this country. The federal justice system should lead the nation in ensuring proportional and equitable accountability, not arbitrary and inhumane treatment. Unjust criminal justice practices and unnecessary immigrant detention run contrary to our faith and to our nation’s fundamental values of basic dignity, due process, and human rights.

End Mandatory Minimum Sentencing

We urge Congress to support federal criminal justice reform legislation that would:

Allow judges the discretion to fully consider the circumstances of individual cases to arrive at the most appropriate sentencing decision.

Strike or reduce mandatory minimum sentences.

Shrink the size of the federal prison system, particularly among people convicted of nonviolent and low-level offenses.

Eliminate racial disparity and racial bias in sentencing.

Prioritize alternatives to incarceration for individuals who pose little threat to public safety, and ensure accountability without the use of excessive punishment.

Eliminate the Detention Bed Quota for Immigrants and Implement Alternatives to Detention

In the House, Representatives Ted Deutch (D-FL) and Bill Foster (D-IL) will introduce an amendment to strike the quota language in the appropriations bill. We ask you to:

Vote in favor of this amendment.

Contact other offices to gain support for the elimination of the quota.

WASHINGTON, DC — Ecumenical Advocacy Days for Global Peace with Justice (EAD) is pleased to announce that Ferguson, MO area pastor and religious leader, Rev. Traci deVon Blackmon, will serve as the opening keynote preacher/speaker for EAD’s 2015 National Gathering on April 17, 2015, at 7:00 pm. EAD’s 2015 theme is titled, “Breaking the Chains: Mass Incarceration & Systems of Exploitation.” The gathering is being held at the Crystal City DoubleTree Hotel in Arlington, VA – just across the Potomac River from Washington, DC.

A nationally recognized preacher and speaker, Rev. Blackmon is a pastor ordained in the African Methodist Episcopal Church and the United Church of Christ, a licensed registered nurse, and a mother of three. She currently serves as the 18th installed and first woman pastor in the 156-year history of Christ the King United Church of Christ in Florissant, MO (also in St. Louis metro area).

Rev. Blackmon has been ministering on the frontline of the Ferguson demonstrations since the beginning, helping the families and friends of those who have been affected by the events in both Ferguson and St. Louis.She took time from her daily work to devote her attention to demonstrations and activities sparked from the fatal police shooting of Michael Brown.

Pastor Traci, as she is often affectionately called, has served the movement as chaplain, community organizer, mediator, teacher and protester – continually maintaining a strong and public commitment to her faith and nonviolence. She has organized community gatherings at Christ the King UCC that have included Gov. Jay Nixon, U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill, Ferguson police, news media and other community leaders and residents. Over the past few months, she has also coordinated and invited religious leaders from around the country to organizing, advocacy and non-violent protest trainings at her congregation.

“EAD is honored and quite fortunate to welcome Rev. Blackmon to the pulpit at our Opening Celebration,” said Douglas Grace, Director of EAD. “Mass incarceration and systems of exploitation are hardly issues to celebrate, but what Pastor Traci will inspire is a deep passion for a faithful, active and moving public witness for justice while helping EAD participants to unpack this year’s theme based on Lamentations 3:34-36 and Acts 16:16-40.”

Rev. Blackmon’s early and prominent response to racial tensions in the aftermath of the killing of Michael Brown earned her an appointment to the Ferguson Commission. She is also the recipient of numerous awards including The President’s Volunteer Service Award from the White House, St. Louis University Community Leader of the Year, Drum Major Award from The Coalition of Black Trade Unionist, NAACP St. Louis County Rosa Parks Award, and several others from local organizations.

“Everybody that is trying to move this [Ferguson], we need to all be working together,” Blackmon has said. “I think we are all working in the same direction, but we are not always working together in terms of being wise about our utilization of resources, both human and physical resources, so that we can endure for the long-term.”

Grace concluded, “I look forward to Rev. Blackmon’s proclamation of the Word that teaches us to face the reality of mass incarceration and corporate exploitation, and motivates the church to call for national policies that brings liberation to both the prisoner and to a world in need of restoration.”

]]>http://advocacydays.org/2015/03/12/ferguson-leader-rev-traci-devon-blackmon-to-keynote-ead-opening-celebration/feed/0Bishop José García to Preach at EAD 2015http://advocacydays.org/2015/01/28/bishop-jose-garcia-to-preach-at-ead-2015/
http://advocacydays.org/2015/01/28/bishop-jose-garcia-to-preach-at-ead-2015/#commentsWed, 28 Jan 2015 16:30:24 +0000http://advocacydays.org/?p=2095WASHINGTON, DC — Ecumenical Advocacy Days for Global Peace with Justice (EAD) is pleased to announce that Bishop José García will serve as the Interdenominational Worship Keynote Preacher for EAD’s 2015 national gathering on Sunday morning, April 19, 2015 at the DoubleTree Crystal City Hotel in Arlington, Virginia. Bishop García is the new Director of Church Relations for Bread for...

]]>WASHINGTON, DC — Ecumenical Advocacy Days for Global Peace with Justice (EAD) is pleased to announce that Bishop José García will serve as the Interdenominational Worship Keynote Preacher for EAD’s 2015 national gathering on Sunday morning, April 19, 2015 at the DoubleTree Crystal City Hotel in Arlington, Virginia.

Bishop García is the new Director of Church Relations for Bread for the World. He will be joined by The ELCA Glocal Musicians and various ecumenical liturgists in leading worship for the EAD’s 13th annual national gathering, April 17-20, 2015. The gathering is titled, “Breaking the Chains: Mass Incarceration and Systems of Exploitation.”

“Bread for the World is an active, engaged and valued sponsor of EAD,'” said Douglas Grace, Director of EAD. “We are thrilled to welcome Bishop García into our EAD family and his first national gathering, and we are looking forward in welcoming him to God’s pulpit!”

Bishop García will be preaching on EAD’s 2015 texts: Lam. 3:34-36 and Acts 16:16-40 while also addressing EAD’s theme description: “A world that incarcerates so many and allows some to profit from the exploitation of slave, trafficked and forced labor remains far from the ‘beloved community’ which we are all called to seek.”

Bishop García joined Bread for the World in August of 2014. He plays a key role in carrying out Bread’s Long-Term Plan and the newly-adopted Three-Year plan, emphasizing grounding our work in God’s love and becoming a more diverse organization.

Previously, he served for ten years as the Presiding Bishop for the Church of God of Prophecy in California. He was responsible for the organizational structure, implementation, and administration of the total ministries of the church. He has also served as Executive Director of the NHRPCH, a non-profit organization dealing with the numerous disparities in health, social and economic status faced by Hispanics in the US, and in local and national boards such as “La Red”, and NALEC, that advocate for immigration reform. Bishop García received a Master Degree in Public Health Education from the School of Public Health in Puerto Rico, and is pursuing a Master of Arts Degree from Gordon Conwell Seminary.